Added synchronized lights to Dominion Garden of Lights
Installed a new Eagle Tribute Plaza, thanks to thousands of donations; 1,300 guests attended an October 2011 dedication
Acquired Norfolk Consortium funding for Eagle Festival
Acquired Norfolk Consortium funding for 75th Anniversary Celebration
Installed the Infinity Garden
Reached a major milestone: memberships now number over 8,000
Presented Eagle Festival and Symposium, a first time event; 2,200 people attended from 19 states and one foreign country
Presented Honey Bee Festival, a new event in collaboration with Beekeepers Guild of Southeast Virginia; 1200 attended
Vital Statistics
275,551 – Total Attendance
17,461 – Children’s programs attendance
608 – Number of children’s programs
4,571 – Adult programs attendance
559 – Number of adult programs
8,193 – Total memberships
762 – Volunteers (groups count as one)
25,270 – Volunteer hours
1,092 – Total functions requiring setup
7,800 – Plants added to permanent landscape (does not include bulbs, pansies and annuals)
2,551,660 – Website visits
$172,346 – Online sales and donations from 2,152 visitors
Horticulture and Maintenance
Built a new Bicentennial Rose Garden trellis
Transplanted 150 roses in the Rose Garden
Moved sidewalks in the Rose Garden to fill gaps and make route more navigable
Successfully transplanted five large Chionanthus from the Beautiful Gardens trial beds to the Virginia Native Plant Garden and The Enchanted Forest
Removed three live oaks from NATO Tower
Planted 598 plants in fall of 2011
Acquired approximately 1200 azalea cuttings and 250 plants through a newly formed association with the Northern Virginia Chapter of the Azalea Society of America and the American Rhododendron Society
Planted approximately 3,200 bulbs in a permanent mass planting
Revitalized the Tropical Display House through pruning and selective plant removal
Installed new water feature, feeder poles, and freestanding trellises in the Hummingbird Garden
Planted approximately 18,000 annuals and bulbs for the winter 2011/2012 annual display
Planted approximately 10,000 annuals for the summer 2012 annual display
Planted more than 3,000 plants for permanent display (trees, shrubs, perennials, bulbs, etc.)
Installed automation for propagation greenhouse to control fans, vents, heating and cooling
Received a grant from National American Rhododendron Society to create interpretive signage for McDonald and Glenn Dale azaleas in the garden
Sent seeds of two Anthurium species to Bicton Park Botanical Gardens in England, one of which is a very rare species that is critically endangered in the wild
Painted the gazebo at Baker Overlook
Donor Relations
Serving Our Community:
Created a new “Day of Nature” scholarship fund for underprivileged children to visit the Garden at no cost
Received a grant from The Virginian-Pilot to host 12 homeless ForKids children at the NBG summer camp
Doubled revenue in the second year of the Garden Patron donor program with a total of 252 donors
Dominion Garden of Lights:
Secured a new three-year corporate partnership with Dominion
Monday Military Appreciation Nights with USAA: doubled military family attendance
Food Lion sponsors again for the 6th year in a row
The second annual “Million Bulb Walk” hosted over 2,000 participants
Created a new tribute brick opportunity on the Eagle Tribute Plaza along with bench naming opportunities
Launched a summer music series called “Dancing Through The Decades” with Sinclair radio and Hoffman Beverage as sponsors
Received a large planned gift from an Evergreen Society member that was used to help pay for a new tram
Created a second Video of Thanks that was mailed, emailed and featured on the website to major donors along with annual report listings
Implemented an increase in member rates generating $75,000 more annually
Visitor Services
Sold 4,189 memberships at the visitor center front desk
Initiated a set-up fee of $50 for plant societies resulting in $2,950 in revenue
Hosted 43 plant society meetings and 9 plant society shows, regional & national meetings
Facilitated two Civic League picnics
Facilitated five regattas with EVSRA which generated $7,548
Restructured food service contracts to increase revenue
Coordinated Warrior Ride (wounded veterans)
Assisted with the Zombie Run
Facilitated an “Eagle Ceremony” on Native American Heritage Day
Managed 130 wedding events (an increase of 17 events from 2010-2011) attended by 10,538 guests
Handled more than 1000 in-bound sales leads (internet, telephone, walk-up)
Booked 142 portrait sessions generating $5500 in revenue for weddings
Participated in the Uniquely Yours Bridal Show, 200 leads generated
Hosted our 4th annual Bridal Open House, 20+ vendors and 55 qualified leads
Started a “Weddings at Norfolk Botanical Garden” Facebook page to keep up with current market trends and as a way to share with and reach out to a wider audience
Signed a new contract with TheKnot.com for marketing our venue on-line profile which generates wedding leads and on-line event reviews
In conjunction with Education, started and maintained a Pinterest.com page, with both wedding ceremonies and wedding receptions boards
Updated our portrait photography policy to better serve a wider number of clients.
Managed 1,092 total set-ups and tear-downs for the year
Refurbished Rose Garden Hall, with Norfolk Botanical Garden Foundation funding, that included new wall paper, new lighting, new Humigard ceiling tiles and repainting
Education and Communication
Expanded Facebook public relation efforts; 9,900 fans, 59% increase from FY2010 -2011
Amanda Wells awarded the City of Norfolk Tour Guide of the Year from Visit Norfolk
Coordinated February Fun Month and the Big Bike Bash; guests invited to ride all day, every day, $5 admission all month
Collaborated on marketing projects with Dominion, Virginia Stage Company, Nauticus, and Virginia Living Museum
A team of seven staff visited Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina to study guest experience
Developed cell phone audio tours
Made improvements to World of Wonder Children’s Garden
Installed new permanent pathways in Plant Safari
Replaced the floating raft
Installed new signage
Installed new resilient paving at the fountains
Installed red barn in the Dirt Factory
Added two new sculptures in the Passport Gardens
Presented Polar Express and Sundays with Santa; largest revenue ($34,125) and participation (3,379) to date, a 30% increase
Had 18 Floral Certificate Program graduates and 9 Intermediate Design graduates
Presented three major new workshops: Sustainable Landscaping, Wildlife Rehabilitator’s Conference and the Eagle Symposium
Completed 2,351 tram operations – 1,785 public trams, 277 trams for education programs, 193 trams for group tours and weddings, 68 Polar express trams and 28 azalea tour trams
Completed 975 public boat tours
Purchased new bio-diesel tram and placed it into operation
Retired two “critter-crawler” trams after 46 years of service
Received Best of Hampton Roads Awards
Installed a new Eagle Tribute Plaza, thanks to thousands of donations; 1,300 guests attended an October 2011 dedication
275,551 – Total Attendance
2,551,660 – Website visits
Removed three live oaks from NATO Tower
3,000 plants for permanent display (trees, shrubs, perennials, bulbs, etc.)
Created a new “Day of Nature” scholarship fund for underprivileged children to visit the Garden at no cost
Launched a summer music series called “Dancing Through The Decades” with Sinclair radio and Hoffman Beverage as sponsors
Facilitated two Civic League picnics
Coordinated February Fun Month and the Big Bike Bash; guests invited to ride all day, every day, $5 admission all month
Added two new sculptures in the Passport Gardens
